


Where There is Love There is Life - Fictober 2019

by arcadia75



Category: Star Trek: Voyager
Genre: Book: Full Circle - Kirsten Beyer, Book: Protectors - Kirsten Beyer, Book: The Eternal Tide - Kirsten Beyer, Drabble, Drabble Collection, F/M, Fictober 2019, Gen, Homecoming, POV First Person, The Farther Shore, relaunch novels
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-01
Updated: 2019-11-01
Packaged: 2021-01-16 13:47:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 18
Words: 1,800
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21272045
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/arcadia75/pseuds/arcadia75
Summary: A series of drabbles telling the story of the relationship of Carla and Mark Johnson against the background of the Voyager story.  The prompts were taken from the Fictober 2019 prompt list, although I did not use all thirty-one.





	1. It will be fun, trust me.

**Author's Note:**

> Huge thank you @curator-on-a03 and @elephantintheprideparade for offering feedback!
> 
> This story does reference some of the major plot points of the Voyager Relaunch Novels, Homecoming through Protectors. Don't read if you don't want to be spoiled. And while you don't strictly speaking need to have read the books to understand the story, it probably does help to have some book knowledge.
> 
> I've ignored a few details of the relaunch world and added a few new details of my own. :)

We meet when Barry Clark is taking me through the itinerary for the Aldebaran symposium.

“Carla, meet Mark Johnson. Mark, Carla Reynolds. Mark is going with you to Aldebaran.”

In the midst of politely shaking my hand, Mark turns with a startled look, a protest already forming on his lips.

Barry gently clasps Mark’s shoulder, “Mark, get away from Earth for a bit. Two days. Help Carla through the presentation, facilitate some introductions. It will be fun, trust me.”

Mark huffs a laugh and stalks off with a mumbled “nice to meet you.” I am instantly smitten after one handshake.


	2. Yes, I’m aware. Your point?

“Yes, I’m aware. Your point?”

We have been debating Vulcan versus Bajoran philosophies of the afterlife for two hours, and even after knowing Mark for a few months now, I am still amazed by his encyclopedic knowledge of non-human cultures. I am more attracted to him by the day, but I’ve heard rumors about a fiance and a broken engagement.

Mark blinks and finally blurts, “Would you like to have dinner with me?”

I pause, not wanting to misinterpret. “Like a date?”

“Yes, if you’d like it to be.” 

I can tell he is nervous.

I smile, “I’d love to.”


	3. I know you didn’t ask for this.

On an unremarkable Tuesday, after we have been on a few dinner dates, it all comes pouring out of him. The stubborn, red-headed girl he met when he was eleven. Reconnecting as adults after she suffered an unimaginable tragedy. Getting engaged. A three-week mission, and a starship that had been declared officially lost.

“I know you didn’t ask for this. A man with emotional baggage and a dog that isn’t his. But I like you, Carla. If you can be patient with me, I think we can be something special.”

I know then that I will never leave Mark alone.


	4. Just follow me, I know the area

On our last day of our vacation on Betazed, we have a picnic lunch in a small, somewhat hidden park next to Lake Cataria. I have teasingly questioned whether Mark knows where he is going.

“Just follow me, I know the area.”

I ask for another sandwich and when I turn to Mark, he is holding a small black box.

“Carla, you helped me see it was possible to love again. And I want to be with you every day. Will you marry me?”

My heart soars and I feel tears in my eyes. I don’t hesitate in answering.

“Yes.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some references taken from Letting Go by Keith R.A. DeCandido in Distant Shores.


	5. I’m with you, you know that.

Mark closes the connection with Starfleet in stunned silence. Voyager made contact. His fiance isn't dead. A million thoughts run through my head. Would he want a divorce? We have only been married for four months. Surely that was nothing against a lifetime of memories with the woman he used to love.

Mark turns to me, sees the expression on my face, and immediately takes me in his arms.

“I’m with you, you know that. You’re my wife and nothing is going to change that. I’m happy Kathryn’s alive and thrilled for her family. But you’re my family now, forever.”


	6. What if I don’t see it?

I have been feeling off for a few weeks. Finally Mark convinces me to let him scan my belly with the tricorder. When it shows two heartbeats, we can’t contain our tears. We have been trying to get pregnant for a few months with no success. Today we are going to the doctor for our first prenatal appointment and scan.

“What if I don’t see it? If I don’t see it, am I already a horrible mother?”

“You’re eight weeks pregnant, the baby is as big as a raspberry. You’ll see it. And you’re going to be a wonderful mother.”


	7. I never knew it could be this way.

I watch my infant son sleep in the pre-dawn light. I never knew it could be this way. I never knew I could love someone so completely and yet be filled with worry and anxiety at the same time. Was he sleeping enough, eating enough? Was he too warm, too cold? There is nothing like being a first time mother to bring out all your insecurities. Would I be good enough for him? The Breen attack on Earth has shaken our confidence in the security of our world. Will we be able to keep Kevin safe in this uncertain universe?


	8. There is a certain taste to it.

“You haven’t had unreplicated coffee in almost seven years?” Mark teases Kathryn over the comm.

Voyager has been able to establish limited, short contact with family and friends on Earth. Gretchen reached out to Mark and asked if he would like an opportunity to speak with Kathryn during her next alloted communication slot. 

“I have my Delta Quadrant better than coffee substitute. There is a certain taste to it.”

Even from the other room I can hear the eyeroll of a woman I’ve never met in person. 

“Kath, stay safe. Everyone here misses you and knows you’ll get home soon.”


	9. Listen. No, really listen

Mark and Kevin come bounding into the house babbling about how much fun they had at the park. I’m trying to get Mark’s attention, but he’s just so distracted with getting Kevin’s shoes off and what to make for dinner and if we were still going to visit my parents this weekend. Finally, I grab Mark by the shoulders and make him look at me.

“Mark, stop, stop. Listen. No, really listen. Voyager is back. It is all over the news, they made it back this morning.”

Mark just stares at me, “They’re back? Kath did it?”

“She did it.”


	10. Scared, me?

I’ve been puttering around the kitchen all day. I’m meeting Kathryn for the first time tonight and I am a nervous wreck. 

Mark gently lays his hand over mine as I vigorously chop carrots. 

“Carla, there’s nothing to be scared of. It’s just Kathryn.”

“Scared, me? This woman just brought a starship home in a tenth of the time it was supposed to take and is the hero of the Federation. And she’s having dinner at my house. Oh, and she used to be engaged to my husband.”

“My wonderful and beautiful wife, trust me, she’s going to love you.”


	11. I can’t come back

My world has narrowed to this tiny, grey room at Starfleet Medical, where my son is sleeping. I was terrified when he started getting sick, and again when Starfleet personnel in hazmat suits came bursting into our home and unceremoniously escorted us to this establishment.

I turned on Mark, screaming at him that this was his fault, how I wished I had never heard of him, or Kathryn Janeway or the Borg.

Now that Kevin is out of danger, I wonder what is next. How do I trust again? I can’t come back. The world is not a safe place.


	12. There is just something about him.

“Actually, I’ve started seeing someone. I haven’t told many people.” Kathryn says as she pours herself another coffee. In the year since Kevin was sick, the three of us have formed a comfortable friendship.

I give Mark a sidelong glance before he ventures, “Chakotay?”

“How did...did my mother tell you?” Kathryn asks incredulously.

“She didn’t say anything. There’s just something about him. Carla and I have a bet on how long before you two ended up together.”

“You bet on my love life?” Kathryn sputters, more amused than angry.

“We just want to see you happy. You deserve it.”


	13. No, and that’s final.

“Can I take three toys?”

“No, Kevin. Please get your shoes on, we have to go to the store now.”

“Ok, how about two toys? I have two hands, so I can carry two toys.”

“No, Kevin,” I repeat as I lift him onto the counter and start putting on his shoes. 

“This isn’t a store where you can bring toys.”

“Ok, ok, just one toy.”

I take a deep breath and count to ten to contain the desire to yell. I think for the thousandth time: can there _be_ a more stubborn kid on Earth? 

“No, and that’s final.”


	14. Patience… is not something I’m known for.

Kathryn is entertaining Kevin as I put the lasagna in the oven. She has come over early for dinner and we are waiting for Mark to get home.

“How’s Chakotay? When will he be back again?”

Kathryn sighs, “Not for another three months and two days.”

“Not that you’re counting or anything,” I tease.

“Patience… is not something I’m known for.”

“Can’t you recall his ship? Don’t you admirals have that kind of power?”

“Unfortunately, not with ships that aren’t in your chain of command,” she grumbles. “It’s only three more months. We’ve waited this long; it won’t kill me.”


	15. Can you wait for me?

Mark ends his comm call with Gretchen with tears in his eyes. He immediately crosses the room and hauls me into his arms. There were tears in my eyes too. How much heartbreak did this man have to endure because of his friend?

“I need to get to Venice.”

“I’ll come with you. Can you wait for me? Let me call my parents, they can come stay with Kevin.”

“No, don’t bother them, I shouldn’t be gone long.”

I watch him start to make the arrangements to leave, wishing he didn’t intimately understand the message he was about to deliver.


	16. Change is annoyingly difficult.

I finally get the baby down for a nap and Kevin off to preschool. The house is blissfully quiet. I shuffle into the kitchen; one look at the mess brings another wave of tiredness to me. Even though I’ve been through this once before, I have forgotten the exhaustion of having a newborn. We had gotten used to the routine and rhythm of our family of three. Change is annoyingly difficult. I start to clean up the breakfast dishes, Mark’s coffee mug, the dog’s spilled food. I relish the peace in this rare silence before Grace wakes and Kevin returns.


	17. You could talk about it, you know?

Mark has been quiet since returning from meeting Kathryn for coffee. When we got the news that she had returned from the dead...again...we couldn’t believe it. Now, after meeting her before she shipped back out to the Delta Quadrant, Mark is unusually reserved.

“You could talk about it, you know? It doesn’t bother me to talk about her anymore,” I venture.

“Seeing Kathryn today made me realize how the universe is a strange and wonderful place. She’s going home to her stars and Chakotay, and I’m the luckiest man in the world to have you, Kevin, and Grace.”


	18. I might just kiss you.

It’s been a beautiful night in Indiana, and the party is starting to wind down. Finally, almost fifteen years after they met, Kathryn Janeway and Chakotay become husband and wife.

We’re one of the last couples still on the dance floor, not willing to end the opportunity of a child-free evening early.

“What are you thinking?” I ask, gazing up at my handsome husband.

“I’m thinking I’m grateful my friend got her happy ending. And how lucky I am to have you. I love you, Carla.”

“Mr. Johnson, I might just kiss you.”

“Mrs. Johnson, I might just let you.”

**Author's Note:**

> I'm pretty much ignoring the whole Mark is a botanist as portrayed in the relaunch novels. No, he's a philosopher.
> 
> Also bonus points if you find all the _Friends_ references I apparently subconsciously stuck in here. Guess that's what happens when you're watching a lot of reruns on cable. :)


End file.
